BIG TROUBLE IN LITTLE CHINA

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Big Trouble in Little China - film review

Reviewed by: Mark Geraghty Review date: June 26, 2016

Screen Fantastique rating: 3 stars

To celebrate the 30th Anniversary of Big Trouble in Little China, it’s worth taking a fresh look at the film to understand why it didn’t succeed at the Box Office but found a cult following in the years after its release. Big Trouble in Little China was John Carpenter’s ninth feature film and his fourth collaboration with Kurt Russell as his leading man. The film was something of a risk for 20th Century Fox, the film’s financing studio; as the Kung-Fu mash-up film was not a genre that had broken into collective consciousness of mainstream movie-goers. John Carpenter has stated in the years that followed that he was well supported by the studio during the film’s production but felt the marketing allowance cap imposed by Fox ($3 million) resulted in poor awareness of its release. Of Carpenter’s 15 feature films that have had box office results tracked, Big Trouble in Little ranks at Number 12, with an inflation-adjusted lifetime total of $25.6 million. The film’s disappointing result was reflected in Carpenter’s decision to move away from studio-financed films for the remainder of his directing career.

Despite limited awareness of the film at the time of its release, the 20th Century Fox marketing people put together a behind-the-scenes featurette for Big Trouble in Little China.

If the cerebral cortex of Big Trouble in Little China is all about the Kung-Fu/Action mash-up movie, then its heart is all about how much Comedy can be pumped into the mash-up mix. The viewer gets a sense of this in the opening sequence with Kurt Russell’s Jack Burton on the CB radio as he wheels his rig across the Golden Gate Bridge and into the heart of San Francisco; specifically Chinatown. Jack is a loud-mouth “know-it-all” who really knows very little and, as his interactions with his Chinese buddies early in the film demonstrate, is always trying to catch-up with what just happened. His know-nothing approach sees him become the punchline of many of the film’s visual gags. Burton was originally written as a Cowboy and the story took place in 1880s San Francisco, but the period setting of Gary Goldman and David Weinstein’s version proved a narrative challenge, as the clash of Kung-Fu, Action, Fantasy and Comedy genres in a Western setting was deemed too complex by Fox. W.D. Richter (who had just come off directing another cult classic, The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension) was brought into to completely rewrite the screenplay and he started by setting the story in modern day San Francisco. This decision made the story more accessible to a broader audience, but was still risky.

With the script rewritten, Carpenter took it upon himself to invert audience preconceptions of how his characters should act. Burton’s general incompetence is not what is commonly associated with a film’s leading character and Kurt Russell puts himself “out there” for the whole film, as does Dennis Dun, whose character Wang Chi actually turns out to be the hero of the movie. Likewise, Kim Catrall’s Gracie Law is no damsel in distress. Carpenter’s decision to cast Catrall and have her play smart and tough was a concern for Fox because the actress was largely known to audiences as the howling Miss Honeywell in the R-rated teen comedy Porky’s. However, her turn as Karen Thompson in another classic comedy, Police Academy, demonstrated that she had all the elements required to bring Carpenter’s vision of Gracie Law to life. The predominantly Asian cast all threw themselves into proceedings with a fair amount of gusto, with veteran character actors like James Hong (as the villainous Lo Pan) and Victor Wong (as Egg Shen) filling key supporting roles. In terms of Action actors, Carpenter cast Carter Wong, Peter Kwong and James Pax as Thunder, rain & Lightning respectively; three supernatural beings Lo Pan uses to do his bidding throughout the movie.

One of the real highlights of Big Trouble in Little China is the set design. Veteran Art Director John Lloyd served as the film’s overall Production Designer, with Oscar-winner George R. Nelson looking after the set decoration. The presentation of both the interior and exterior of the Chinatown sets, especially Lo Pan’s labyrinthian lair, allow Carpenter and long-time cinematography collaborator Dean Cundey to create great atmosphere and leave the characters in doubt that they have entered some kind of parallel reality where mysticism and magic are the order of the day. Another element that really differentiates Big Trouble in Little China is its costume design. Costume Designer April Ferry came up with unique designs based on traditional Chinese garments for each of the main Asian characters. Her creation for Lightning, with his over-sized conical hat, and Lo Pan’s traditional green and red Dragon garment (and high hat) make both characters instantly memorable. Ferry was also responsible for finding Jack Burton’s Fu Manchu tank top; a costume item that has gone on to have a life of its own outside of the movie!

Does Big Trouble in Little China get it right all the time? No. One of the film’s biggest drawbacks is its visual effects. By comparison to other movies of that era, many of the visual effects look cheap. Richard Edlund’s Boss Films provided the bulk of the effects shots for the film, but the $2 million allocated in the budget was barely enough get what was required, let alone delivering above-average effects that lifted the overall standard of the movie. One of the other problems with Big Trouble in Little China is the ambiguous relationship between Jack and Gracie. Carpenter decides to allow his “hero” to walk away from a chance with the girl whom he has spent half the movie trying to rescue. It’s an interesting choice for the character but is consistent with the perception Carpenter has created for the audience that Jack is too full of his own opinion to see when he’s got something (or someone, in this case) great staring him in the face. The problem his decision creates, in terms of the viewer’s contexting of the story to their own reality, is that it not only makes him look dumb, but it undermines audience expectation for satisfaction. Whether film-makers like it or not, narrative and plot conventions play a large role in whether or not a viewer walks away satisfied with the outcome of a film. It’s fine to be determined to “honour your vision”, but an uncompromising approach, such as the one Carpenter took on Big Trouble in Little China, reduces opportunity for critical and commercial success.

John Carpenter has always been involved in the music for his films and Big Trouble in Little China saw him extend that involvement to the release of a video for the title track from the film. The song is performed by the Coupe De Villes, a band consisting of Carpenter and long-time movie-making associates Tommy Lee Wallace and Nick Castle. The has been featured on all the versions of the film soundtrack including the La-La Land two-disc expanded edition that was released in 2009.

​Perhaps this is why Big Trouble in Little China found an audience beyond its cinematic release. The home entertainment experience is much more forgiving of marginal, uncompromising and “different” material, as the investment (intellectual, emotional & financial) is less demanding. The act of getting into your car and driving to a cinema to see a movie is a calculated judgement where audiences regard an excellent ending as a prerequisite to their enjoyment. Anything less and the contagion that is “word-of-mouth” spreads quickly. Renting a video for a night in (as it was back in the late 1980s) was far easier in every way. While it was a different movie for its time, Big Trouble in Little China had the advantage of having a reasonably well-known star, a reasonably well-known Director and an up-and-coming leading actress when it was first released onto the home entertainment market. It was an easy choice to pick-up off the video store shelf and take home to watch at leisure over a 24 hour new release rental period. This goes a long way to explaining how and why the movie’s reputation has grown over the years since its release. Some movies find their audience straight away. Big Trouble in Little China didn’t at first, but it certainly has in the ensuing 30 years!